Dallas Cowboys Blog

DeMarcus Ware: Cowboys need to keep ‘solid player’ Anthony Spencer

ARLINGTON – Over the next few weeks, one of the biggest decisions the Cowboys face is what to do with unrestricted free agent outside linebacker Anthony Spencer.

Cowboys outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware said he wants to see Spencer return to the Cowboys.

“I think it’s really important to get Spencer back because if you look back, he’s not a guy who is probably going to have 40 or 50 sacks, but at the end of the day, he’s a run-stopper,” Ware said Saturday night while representing Red Bull at the Supercross event at Cowboys Stadium. “He drops a lot and you see a lot of pass breakups and a lot of tackles for loss, so he’s making a lot of plays for us but they are subtle plays. He’s a solid player we need to keep.”

The Cowboys are currently considering whether to use the franchise tag on Spencer that would cost the team $8.8 million in salary cap space. The deadline for NFL teams to use their franchise tag on one player is March 5.

Until then, the Cowboys will likely talk to Spencer’s agent about a possible contract extension that would allow them to use less than $8.8 million he would receive as the team’s franchise player this year. The NFL’s free agency period opens March 13.

The Cowboys’ decision on Spencer will set the table for what they could do via free agency this off-season. It’s a big decision for the Cowboys considering they don’t have a suitable replacement on the roster right now for Spencer and the free agent market for outside linebackers isn’t particularly strong this year.

Spencer, a 2007 first-round pick, has often been criticized during his time with the Cowboys. He became a full-time starter in 2009 and finished with 98 tackles, six sacks, nine tackles for loss and 36 quarterback pressures. In 2010, Spencer struggled and finished with only one tackle for loss, 14 quarterback pressures and five sacks.

Spencer forced four fumbles and had six sacks – tying his career high – last season but still went stretches where he made few impact plays and seemingly disappeared at times.

Those who criticize Spencer often say he doesn’t do enough to help Ware, who finished second in the NFL in sacks. Spencer turned 28 in January and said in late December he would like to remain with the Cowboys.

“I’ve been here. I like it here. I don’t want to go nowhere else,” Spencer said. “But I got to do what’s best for me and my family.”

Is Spencer unfairly criticized considering he’s often compared to Ware, one of the NFL’s elite pass rushers?

“I rush 90 percent of the time and he drops 90 percent of the time,” Ware said. “But when it’s time to rush the passer, he’s always been there. When we’ve run a 4-3, he was a defensive end who got pressure.”